The present invention relates to an improved finger gripping device for use on a writing instrument or the like and more particularly to a finger gripping device which provides improved ease of manipulation of an article employing the device.
Presently, there are a number of known devices which are intended to provide a comfortable finger gripping area for finger manipulated articles, one such device being that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,932,800 issued Jun. 12, 1990 and assigned to the assignee of the present invention.
Other such devices are also known in the art and are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,601,598; 4,167,347; 4,035,089; 2,236,194; 2,180,560; 2,173,451; and 1,807,415. Known devices are also disclosed in the foreign patent art, by way of example German Patents 1,511,325; 2,157,175; and International Patent Application PCT/US/00002.
Finger gripping devices such as those disclosed in the above cited U.S. Pat. No. 4,932,800, generally provide a sleeve of compressible material for assembly with that portion of an article grasped by the user during finger manipulation of the article. The basic function assigned to the device is to deform on application of gripping pressure and to at least partially assume the shape of the gripping fingers during manipulation of the article by the user. In general, the device is sufficiently resilient to recover its original shape shortly after removal of gripping pressure. Many of the finger gripping devices that are known have received acceptance in the marketplace, and have provided the consumer with an improved writing device when combined with a writing instrument such as a pen or pencil. However, while the various gripping devices which are installed over the surface portion of the article to be manipulated are generally simple to manufacture, a need arises for a finger gripping device which may either be incorporated within the structure of the article to be manipulated, or as a separate unit, as desired by the manufacturer. As is evident, the incorporation of the gripping device in the structure of the article would tend to produce a thinner and less bulky gripping area, particularly when incorporated into a writing instrument.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a compressible finger gripping device which is simple to manufacture and easily assembled onto a writing instrument or the like.
A second object of the invention is to provide a writing instrument employing a manual gripping device adjacent the writing point which provides increased comfort and decreased fatigue during use of the writing instrument.
Still another object of the invention is to provide a compressible finger gripping device which is adaptable for incorporation into the structure of a writing device or may be manufactured as a separate unit for assembly onto the structure of the writing device.
A further object of the invention is to provide a finger gripping device of the type employable with a writing instrument, which is simple to manufacture and inexpensive, being adaptable to mass production techniques.